Method of collecting lint



.D. TAYLOR 2,100,112

METHOD OF COLLECTING LINT Nov. 23, 1937.

Original Filed June 5, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 x .z 2 5 1.9 x v z, 0 41,35 A 1 W5 Nov. 23, 1937, D. TA-YLOR 2,100,112

METHOD OF COLLECTING LINT Original Filed June 5, 1-936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Aim/ 97%? I'Zylor it Z k l t ig; E 1? Patented Nov. 23, 1937 Iiick'Taylor, Paris, Ten, assignor to Southland Cotton Oil Company, Paris,Tex., a corporation of Texas Original application June 5, 1936, SerialNo. 83,650. Divided and this application February 24, 1987, Serial No.127,462

3 Claims.

This invention relates to a method of collecting lint from cottonginning delinting-or similar apparatus, being a division of UnitedStates application Serial No. 83,650, filed by Dick Taylor I on June 5,1936.

While the herein described method is not necessarily dependent upon thespecific apparatus herein disclosedfor its effective performance theinventionv is conveniently elucidated by reference to apparatus suitablefor carrying it into effect.

Thus in the accompanying drawings wherein one desirable embodiment ofmeans useful in the practice of the invention is shown by way ofexample, Y

. Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view, with certain parts brokenaway,showing how the invention may be applied to a battery of lintergins:

Fig. -2 isa side elevation, partly in vertical section, diagrammaticallyillustrating a linter gin with my improved dust separator associatedtherewith; and Fig. 3 is a vertical section, to larger scale, show- 1ing the dust separatorin detail.

Referring tothe drawings, and in particular to Fig. 1, two series-"oflinter gins are illustrated as arranged in a battery delivering fiber toa common condenser. The gins of one series are indicatedat i, jia, etc.and those of the other series at 2, 2 2", etc. Each gin of each seriesis provided witli'a dust-separator 3, such as hereinaiter more-fullydescribed, the lint from the separators associated with thegins I, I,1", etc., being delivered to a lint-conveying'trunk l, while the lintfromthe separators associated with the I gins 2, 2 2, etc., is dgnveredto a lint-conveying trunk 5. These' I and 5 in turn deliver to a trunk 6leading to a 'fan driven bya suitable motor '8.Q'-I-'he lint-laden airis delivered bythe, fan to a-con'denser a of any suitable'type'whichseparates' the useful lint from the air and delivers the lint,either in the form of a-lap roll, or onto a conveyoizili, as"desired.-The air from the condenser preferably 'isdeliver'ed to a cyclone dustseparator ll of anypappropriatetype inf which the heavierparticlea'including some very for example hull-pepper, are separatedfrom. the short fiber and the; latter is then conveyed by the conductorpipe. 14 back intothe link-conducting trunk 8 and thence to the fana'ndcondenser.

short lint, drop to the bottom, while the dustladen air escapes fromthetopand is discharged outside of the ginningroon' The heavier-par"ticles, including the very'short lint, may be carried by the conveyorduct ii, if desired, to a-dust" separator 13 where the very fineparticles of dust,

The several gins of the battery may, for example, be supported upon thefloor l5 of the ginning room, such room having a'roofor ceiling I6 andpreferably being high enough to accommodate the dust separators 3,although it is contemplated 5 that these separators may be placed abovethe ceiling or roof i8 if desired. Each gin i, i, etc. comprises acasing enclosing a saw cylinder I! which cooperates with a grate-falli8,-the casing also defining the roll box l9 and enclosing the dofferbrush 20. This doiier brush is driven at high speed and is adapted tostrip oif the. fiber from the teeth of the saw cylinder, delivering thefiber into the moting space 2! in the lower part of the .gin casing. Inthis space heavy particles, including leaf and trash, are separated" outby gravitation, while the useful fiber remains in suspension in the aircurrent generated by the dofier brush. In accordance with the presentinvention the casing is provided with a 20 pair of deflector plates 22and 23, respectively, which partially encircle the doil'er brush andwhich define the entrance 24 to a lint flue '25 extending from the ginto the corresponding dust .separator 3.

Referring to Fig. 3, the improved dust separator of the presentinvention comprises a casing, preferably including a substantiallycylindrical upper part 28, an intermediate, downwardly convergent, truncated conical portion 21, and .a vertically elongate lower portion 28,-which is preferably of substantially cylindrical section and whichincludes a telescopically adjustable I lower portion 29 having a bottom30 which is per-, 'forated orformed as a grid so ast'o permit theescapeof smallsolid particles which maysettle tothe lower end of thepart29. By adjustment of the part 29 relatively to the fixed part 28,the' length of the chamber 3| in the lower part of the casingmay bevaried, this chamber tuting a secondary moting, space. I

- The top of the dust separator casinglis closed by a'member having acentral opening, from --the..edge of which depends a cylindrical baiiiemember 33 open attop and bottom. 'This bailie memb'erextends down to thepoint 3 4, substantially in; the horizontal plane of the lower end- :ofthe cylindrical portion of the .casing. This cylindrical baflie member33 isicontinued upwardly above the top plate 32 ofthe casing as arelatively short annular flange 35. A cylindrical thiznble orgate-member .36 is arranged to -telescope within the upstanding flangemember 35, such .thimble or gate-member being furnishedwith an outwardlyflaring marginal portion -31 at consti- 40 V its upper end. Thisgate-member 38 is housed within a hood 38 mounted upon the top 32 of thecasing and comprising a lower substantially cylindrical portion 38(concentric with but of greater diameter than the upstanding flange 38)and an upper upwardly convergent truncated conical portion-40 whoseupper end is joined'to the lower end of a dust flue 4|. This dust flue4| extends up through the ceiling or roof l8 of the ginning room. Ifdesired, each individual dust flue 4| may extend directly to the openair or, if preferred, the several dustflues 4| may be connected to acommon trunk flue 42- (Fig. 1) extending along the series of ginsand'eventually leading to the outer atmosphereso that the dust whichpasses out through the lines 4| will be carried away from the ginningroom.

Within the conical portion 40 of the hood there is arranged a deflectoror valve-member 43 preferably comprising two conical members 44 and 45joined at their bases, the lower conical member 45 being disposed withits point downward within the upper part of the gate-member 38. Thislower conical member 45 is secured to the upper end of a supporting andadjusting rod 45 which passes downwardly from top to bottom of theseparator casing and out through the member 38,-being furnished at'itslower end with an actuating element, for example a crossbar 41 (Fig. 2)by means of which the rod 48 and the deflector-valve 43 may bevertically adjusted.

The rod 48 slides, with sumcient friction to hold it in adjustedposition, within a sleeve 48, the upper end of which is furnished witharms whose outer ends are secured to the gate-member 38 and which, withthe sleeve 48, furnish a support for the gate 36. This sleeve 48, likethe rod 48, extends down through the casing and through the bottommember 30 and is furnished at its lower end with an actuating member,for example a disk 50 (Fig. 2), by means of which the sleeve 'may bemoved vertically for adjusting the gate 36.

The sleeve 48 in turn is arranged to slide, with sufllcient friction tohold it in adjusted position,

within an outer sleeve 5|, having bearings 52 and 53 in spiders carriedby the top member 32 and by the cylindrical member 28, respectively, ofthe casing. This outer sleeve 5| forms a support for a guard orregulator 5| preferably of truncated conical form, convergent upwardlyand which is disposed within the conical portion 21 of the easing andsuitably spaced from the lower end 34 of the baflie 33. The sleeve 5|also extends down through the bottom 30 of the casing and is furnishedwith a suitable actuating element such, for example, as a disk 54 orthelike, the sleeve 5| moving with sufficient friction in the bearings52 and 53 to maintain it in adjusted position.

The annular space 55 between the gate-member 38 and the cylindrical part38 of the hood constitutes a collecting chamber for short particles S oflint which have been carried upwardly through the cylindrical baffle 33with the outgoing current of air. From the annular lint-collectingchamber 55 a trunk 58 extends downwardly along the outside of the casingto the point 51 where it enters the lint conductor conveyor tube 58, thelatter leading from the chamber 3| at a point substantially above thebottom of the latter. In one desirable arrangement, the delivery end ofthe lint trunk 58 is provided with a controlling valve 58 mounted, forexample, on a shaft 88 projecting outside of, the lint-conveying ductand having a lever 8| by means of which the shaft may be turned and thevalve adjusted. Any appropriate meansmay be provided for holding thevalve in adjusted position. Alternatively, in place of the valve 58 orin addition thereto, as desired, there is provided a conical nozzle 82,at the entrance to the lint conduit 58 where the latter emerges fromthechamber 3|. The lint conduits 58 from the several separators of thetwo series extend to the trunks 4 and 5, respectively, which, as abovenoted, carry the lint to the fan I and thence to the condenser device 8.

In the operation of the device, the lint-laden current of air created bythe dofler brush 28 of a given gin passes up through the flue 25 andenters the upper part 28 of the corresponding dust collector in atangential direction. The air is thus caused to take up a cyclonicmotion within the casing of the dust collector, such motion tending tocause the lint and other solid particles sustained in the air current tomove toward the axis of the dust collector casing, the heavier particlestending to settle toward the bottom. Thus, as indicated in Fig. 3, asthe air current circulates, entering near the top of the casing, andflrst sweeping downwardly as it circles and then rising toward thecenter to escape upwardly through the baflle 33, the longer and heavierparticles L of lint gradually move toward the axis of the casing andsink toward the bottom of the casing while the air, partially freed fromsuch solid particles, escapes up around the edge of the regulator 5| andthence up into the lower end of the cylindrical baflie 33. By adjustmentof the height of the regulator 5 I, it is possible to assure an almostcomplete separation of the longer lint from the air before the latterenters the lower end of the bailie 33. The longer and heavier lint Lsettles down into the cylindrical lower portion 28 of the casing, and asa portion of the air also passes down through this part of the casing,this longer and heavier lint is swept out throughthe nozzle 82 into theconduit 58. However, just at the entrance to the nozzle 82, the air,laden with lint, is caused to make a sharp change in direction, thuscausing it to eddy, thereby facilitating the separation of such heavierparticles as leaf trash, which sink down into the chamber 3| and theneither drop out through the grid 38 or may be removed from time to timeby separating the part 28 from the part 28 of the casing.

The air which moves upwardly about the lower edge of the regulator 5|carries with it much flne dust and also some short and light particles Sof lint. The volume of the air which passes up through the baiiie 33ordinarily is much greater than that which passes downwardly and outthrough the nozzle 82. This upwardly-moving current of air strikes thelower surface of-the deflector valve 43 and is diverted outwardly andover the edge of the outwardly flaring margin 31 of the gate 38. Thesudden change in direction at this point causes eddies in the movingair, thus causing the separation of the particles S of lint from therelatively flner and lighter dust particles D. The separation at thispoint is dependent upon the relative positioning of the parts 43 and 36with respect to each other and with respect to the upwardly convergentportion 48 of the hood, the necessary adjustments being accomplished bymeans of the actuating members 58 and 54, respectively. When these partshave once been adjusted to the proper position, it is not necessary tochange their adjustment to any extent during the operation of theapparatus, except by reason of some substantial change in the characterof the fiber being operated upon or a change in the operating speedofthe gin. or the like. 1

"I'hemainbodyoftheupwardlymoving air current passes up through the dustflue H with its 5 entrained dust particles D and is discharged,preferably outside of the building, at leasti-not within the ginningroom. However; some .-of-;the air passes'down into the settling I! .andthence out through the lint trunk, sweepingwith it. the lint S whichcollects in'the chamber 55 and carrying it down to the point II where itis delivered into the lint, duct 50. By proper setting of valve 59, therelative proportion of air which shall pass up through the lint flue Hand be determined, and such regulation in turn determines thecompleteness with which the short fiber 8 is separated fromthedust-laden air current.

Instead of using a regulator such as thevalve nozzle determining theamount of air which'can escape directly from the lower part of the maincasing into the lint duct II and thus indirectlydetermining the amountof air which will be drawn down by induction through the lint trunk 53fromthe chamber II. For regulating the amount in this way, it isproposed to provide nomles 62 of diflerent capacities which may beinterchanged one for the other in accordance with varying conditions.However, while either the valve '59 or the nozzle]! may beemployed thelarge but relatively short lines I which need 5 not take up any.substantial part of the working space within the ginning room, while theuseful fiber is conveyed to the condenser l throughthe small diameterducts l and I, by relatively small air currents just sufllcient tomaintain the lint u in suspension.

'In this way the air of the ginning room is freed 'from dust; the powerconsumed in the operation of separating the lint from the air isreduced; the gin structure is simplified bythe elimination of individualpower-driven condenser-- devices and thus the floor space occupied'byeach individual gin is'decreased; the useful fiber is all conveyed toone point of dischargeso that it is not necessary to dof! a lap rollfrom each indivviduai gin at frequent intervals. as is ordinarily whichshall pass down through the trunk I may" 59, the conical nozzle 82: maybe employed, such merged streams.

necessary: the resultant lap from the common condenser is of'moreuniiormcharacter than can 'be expected when individual laps are formed at'eachgin; and by the arrangement herein described and claimed, a morecomplete separation of the lint from the air is eilected than by usualmeans. I

I claim: i w

i. That method of collectingfuseful lint from a battery of ginmechanisms. each so devised as to deliver a lint carrying air current,said method comprising as steps keeping the lint and accompanying dustin air suspension and, while they are in air suspension, separating theuseful but from dust in accordance with the relative masses of the lintand dust particles, dividing the air current into two streams, in one ofwhich the major part of the lint is suspended and in the other of whichthe major part of the dust is suspended, conducting each dust-ladenairstream to a point of discharge remote fromthe gin mechanism,conducting the several lint-laden air streams away from the respectivegin mechanisms, merging said lint carrying air streams, and separatingthe useful lint from the air after merger of said streams.

2. The herein-described method of collecting V lint from aplurality ofgins which consists in delivering the hut from each gin, together withentrained dust, in suspension in the air current producedby the gin and,while keeping them "in' air suspension, separating the useful lint fromdust by centrifugal action, dividing saidf air current from each gininto two streams of relatively large and small volume, respectively,delivering the useful lint, while still 'suspended,-into the 1 smaller'01 said streams, causing the dust to be carried away with the largerair stream, merging the lint carrying air streams from. the severalgins, and separating the useful lint from the merged streams of air.

w 3. The herein described method of collecting lint from a plurality oflinter ginswhich consists in delivering the nut from each gin, togetherwith entrained dust, in suspension in a largelvolume of air flowing awayfrom each gin,and,'while keeping ,them in air suspension, separating theuseful lint from dust in accordance with the relative masses of the lintand dust particles, dividing said flowing air into two streams ofrelatively large and small volume, respectively, causing substantiallyall of the useful lint, while stillv suspended, to enter the smallerstream and to be carried along 1 in suspension therein, causingsubstantially all of the dust to enter the larger air stream, mergingthe lint carrying streams from the several gins, and separating theuseful lint from the moi: TAYLOR.

